More often than not, it is to your benefit to engage the services of a traffic ticket lawyer. This rule applies to almost any type of traffic offense, from speeding and broken taillight citations to making illegal turns and running a red light. If it’s simply a matter of not having updated insurance, you can sometimes present proof of insurance to a judge and have that offense dismissed outright. But if you happen to get cited for DUI, that’s an entirely different legal area (and you will definitely need a lawyer for that).

If you do happen to have the time, the motivation, and/or the requisite legal knowledge, then perhaps you can adjudicate your traffic ticket by yourself (but even then, you would likely only avoid the traffic ticket lawyer’s fee and would still have to pay the fine and/or court costs). In the unlikely event that you feel that you are indeed innocent of the moving violation and feel you have the evidence to support your position, then you can request a trial and act as your own counsel; but the outcome of the case is not guaranteed to be in your favor.

As much as society tends to disparage lawyers, most of them do exist to serve a purpose. Traffic ticket lawyers can simplify the process of addressing your crime while keeping the violation off of your driving record. Given that the charge for these services is usually nominal, it behooves you to consider finding a traffic ticket lawyer instead of automatically paying the fine.